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Asbury Shines in U.S. News Rankings

September 28, 2017

WILMORE, Ky. — Once again, Asbury University has been recognized among the South’s top colleges and universities in the U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges” rankings. Ranked No. 15 among nearly 150 colleges and universities in the Regional Universities South category, Asbury is one of only two Christian universities (CCCU) to earn a place in the Top 15.

The smallest institution in the Top 15 of its category allowing for a remarkable faculty/student ratio, Asbury University outpaces much larger public schools like Western Kentucky (No. 32), Murray State (tie, No. 32), Morehead State (No. 61) and Eastern Kentucky (No. 73). Asbury also leads CCCU member institutions in its regional category, including Milligan University (No. 23), Lee University (No. 48), Carson-Newman University (No. 66)and Campbellsville University (No. 106). The rankings include multiple categories that include other local/state universities. For instance in the national university rankings, the University of Kentucky was ranked No. 133 and Louisville was ranked No. 165 and Centre College is No. 46 and Transylvania No. 87 in the National Liberal Arts category.

Asbury’s success in the U.S. News Best College Rankings is longstanding. Before joining the much-expanded Regional Universities category last year, Asbury earned a Top-5 slot for five years straight in the Regional College category, including a No. 1 ranking in 2014. This year, Asbury continued its tradition of excellence, scoring points for strong retention and graduation rates, small class sizes and more. Here are just a few of the numbers that earned Asbury such high marks:

70.5 percent of Asbury’s classes have fewer than 20 students, creating space for in-depth discussion in a collaborative atmosphere. Large classes are out of the norm at Asbury — only one percent of Asbury classes have 50 students or more.

Asbury’s impressive 12:1 student/faculty ratio creates a more personal learning environment and allows students to build meaningful relationships with their professors.

Asbury enjoys stronger graduation and retention rates than many of the larger schools in its category and all of the Kentucky public schools.

“These indicators speak to the personal impact of Asbury’s rigorous academics,” said Dr. Tim Campbell, academic dean at Asbury. “Asbury prizes the academic and personal relationships between professors and students — relationships that enrich learning in the classroom and, in many cases, for years to come.”